Delivery time for construction projects to be cut

Mike Gibson, Chairman of the Chamber's Property & Construction Committee

Chairman of the Chamber’s Property and Construction Committee, Mike Gibson has been looking at the Government’s latest Construction Strategy, published this week:

The government is to work with the construction industry to cut by a half by 2025 the time taken to complete new build and refurbished buildings, as part of a new Construction Strategy, recently published by the Department for Business Innovation & Skills (BIS).

The Strategy says that, by working in partnership with the construction industry, the government intends to achieve by 2025:

• A 33 per cent reduction in both the initial cost of construction and the whole life cost of assets
• A 50 percent reduction in the overall time from inception to completion for new build and refurbished assets
• A 50 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions in the built environment
• A 50 percent reduction in the trade gap between total exports and total imports for construction products and materials

The report also contains plans for:

• The industry-wide roll-out of BIM
• Tackling skills and manufacturing capacity and capability issues
• Assisting the wider use of apprenticeships and encouraging new entrants
• Developing the construction pipeline and a demand map to 2025
• Identifying new approaches to rationalise pre-qualification
• Improving SME access to financial support and tackle lengthy and late payment
• Increasing levels of innovation in the sector
• Improving the image of the industry

The Strategy’s ambitious targets are to be driven forward by a ‘Construction Leadership Council’, which will develop an Action Plan for their delivery. 
This new council is to be co-chaired by BIS Secretary, Vince Cable, and Sir David Higgins, the former chair of the Olympic Delivery Authority and now chief executive of rail operator Network Rail. 
 
 The strategy document says the Council will bring together organisations from across the diverse spectrum of construction and provide coherent leadership to ensure that the commitments set out in the strategy are delivered and the ambition achieved.

Other members of the Council are to include Adrian Penfold, head of Planning at developer British Land, Mark Clare, Chief Executive of Barratt Developments, Tony Pidgeley, Chairman of Berkeley Homes and Neil Sachdev, Property Director at Sainsbury’s.

Mike Gibson said: "We welcome the strategy and its recognition that government and industry need to work together if we are to tackle the massive challenges the sector faces. This must not be yet another report with plenty of well-meaning words but nothing to show for them. The targets will only be achieved if we all work together and take the actions needed to ensure that the report’s recommendations are carried out."